Black Night, Eternal Light
by Faithstar Prime
Summary: What happens when Phantom, a Deceptifemme raised on Earth for most of her life, finds out she has a greater role than that of the leader's adopted daughter?


War. It is bloody, it is blind, it is a knock on Death's Doors. War has consumed my home planet for millenia, ravaged the natural resources and homes built atop the mighty structures. It is because of this my family hides - Oh, you think we are true family? No. The femmes I consider family are only so because they have sheltered me in my time of fear, let me flower in the dark depths of the earth, and let me prove myself a capable warrior, valuable to our small (in terms of our society's structure) group. Numbering just over fifty, the Deceptifemmes on Earth have a tale to tell, one of betrayal, love, and hate. But one stands over all - I am Phantom, and I will tell you of how my family brought peace to Cybertron, all starting with one little femme. I shall telll you, how I began that change.

* * *

Life on the edges of Autobot and Decepticon radar wasn't easy, but the small form maneuvering the empty ravages of an abandoned battlefield certainly didn't mind. She scanned the landscape carefully before glancing down at her pedes, and she pounced at the charred body part a few feet away, tearing it open to grab a transformation cog before cleaning the cold energon off. Tucking the little node away in subspace, the femme rocked back on her heels, taking a quick break as her vents panted, and she wiped her coolant-slick forehead with the back of her hand. A burp of static made her jump, scrambling to answer her radio, and she waited patiently as a modified Morse code filtered through her translating subroutine, optics dimming as she concentrated. "Well, I found a few transformation cogs, a couple of half-empty blasters, and a thruster pack filled to the brim; Phantom reporting, returning," the pale white femme said, letting her subroutine translate it before clicking her radio off and sneakily worming her way back across the field, following an invisible path she had created in her wake.

Phantom felt her way along the ground, pedes itching to break into a run and devour the land, but she refrained from doing so as she entered a cave, groping along the stony walls before her fingers rammed into a switch. A rumble groaned throughout the cave, amplified by the systems of caverns hidden further back in the cave, and Phantom smiled before sidling through the small opening, making sure to flick the return switch before she was engulfed in darkness. She sent a few pings out, making sure no one was around her before walking forward, optics adjusting to the darkness before she transformed, lumbering form sliding through the tunnels easily. The twisting tunnels led her down into the bowels of the earth, the darkness occasionally punctured by intermittent light of glowing crystals the further she descended, but Phantom was oblivious to it, too wrapped up in the finds she carried in one giant hand as she slipped along the gritty ground. Slowly, light began growing up ahead, and Phantom emerged in a relatively well-lit cavern, the giant walls littered with halogen lamps as well as naturally occurring crystals.

"I'm back!" She said, the soft hum of working joints diminishing slightly as her voice rebounded off the walls of the cave, her inside voice deafening in the enclosed space. A form emerged in the semi-lit cavern, sleek frame slipping along the shadows to Phantom's side, and she stood on tiptoe to see the objects in her hand. "Good, Phantom, this'll help," she said quietly, and Phantom beamed proudly as her tail wiggled excitedly. "Thanks Illusion," Phantom chirped as she padded alongside the retreating femme, and Illusion gently patted her side as they dove into a latticework of intersecting tunnels, maneuvering them easily as they spoke softly. "So… is the rest of the groups having any luck?" Phantom asked softly as they entered a new cave, and Illusion paused, resting a hand on the wall as she looked down before she shook her head. "The Decepticons get closer every time they go out, and the Autobots nearly caught sight the last time they retrieved the dead," Illusion said gravely before her vents sighed sadly, her pedes shuffling to the nearest makeshift chair.

"W-Well, I can help them! Im fast, I can find things quicker than them, I-" Phantom said hurriedly before Illusion raised a hand, and she silenced herself quickly. "No. You are our most precious, and I cannot risk you for the safety of the others," Illusion said motherly as she looked upon the flowering frame standing tall before her. "Yes m'am," Phantom said respctfully as she bowed her head, and Illusion wearily got up, tipping her head back to meet her gaze. "Do not think I do not care, for I do - I worry over you the most because you are the last femme to be birthed during the war. You are unique, nver forget that," Illusion said softly, her creamy optics glowing fiercely as she met Phantom's teal green gaze. Phantom smiled, noding in recognition before she took a step back and said, "Thank you... mom." Illusion smiled at that, Phantom turnng to leave, and as she disapeared into the gloom, Illusion sank into her chair, pressing her hand over her mouth as tears filled her optics. "What am I going to do?" She asked in a helpless voice, lower derma trembling as she traced the small locket Phantom had given her when they first landed on Earth lovingly.


End file.
